Container cap



Aug. 31, 1965 J. w. PARKER 3,203,577

CONTAINER CAP Filed May 24, 1963 3o 30 3 I4 26 5 5 26 no i l8 l6 5 2 3s 24 5 FIG. 2 F I G. I

INVENTOR.

JOSEPH W. PARKER ATTORNEY United States Patent 3,203,577 CONTAINER CAP Joseph W. Parker, Baltimore, Md, assignor to Pharma Plastics Incorporated, a corporation of Maryland Filed May 24, 1963, 521'. No. 282,938 8 'Claims. (Cl. 220-42) This invention relates to a container cap primarily intended for application to aerosol containers.

It has been rather common to provide aerosol containers with caps to cover their valves so as to produce an improved appearance. Such caps have commonly employed relatively rigid ribs fixed internally of such caps, failing to allow for the dimensional variations occurring in the containers themselves. As a consequence, where the ferrules of these containers have been slightly larger than a specified size, stress cracks have occurred in the walls of the caps rendering them unsightly and frequently making the package as an entirety unsalable.

It is among the objects of the present invention to provide a cap which will allow for a wide variation in manufacturing dimensions without danger of such stress cracks. In accordance with this invention there is provided a unitary molded resilient plastic cap comprising an axial wall closed at one end by a radial wall and open at its opposite end for application to a container; and at least three perimetrically spaced ribs each having an end fixed to at least one of the walls, each rib having a free portion including an edge proximate to the axial Wall spaced over a major portion of its length from the axial wall, and an axial edge provided by the free portion remote from the walls resiliently engageable with a portion of a container.

The axial wall is preferably annular and the edges remote from such annular wall preferably diverge towards the open end of the cap to facilitate application of the cap to a container. The ribs preferably have the radial edges of their free ends spaced from the open end of the cap. The proximate and remote edges of the ribs are preferably substantially parallel to the annular wall of the cap. An end of each rib may be fixed to the radial wall, the axial wall, or both.

A more complete understanding of the invention will follow from a detailed description of the accompanying drawings wherein:

FIG. 1 is a sectional elevation of a cap conforming to the present invention shown as applied to an aerosol container;

FIG. 2 is a sectional elevation of the cap; and

FIG. 3 is a bottom plan view of the cap.

The cap is depicted in FIG. 1 as applied to an aerosol container 12 having a valve operator 14 and a ferrule 16. The cap has an axial wall 18 closed at its upper end by a radial wall 20 and an open end 22 whose edge engages the shoulder 24 of the container 12.

As depicted in FIG. 3, the cap is provided with three ribs 26, perimetn'cally or circumferentially equally spaced with respect to the axial or annular wall 18. The upper end 28 of each rib is integral with the radial wall 20 of the cap. A minor portion of the axial edge 30 of each rib is integral with the axial or annular wall 18 of the cap. The major portion 32 of the axial edge of the rib proximate to the wall 18 is substantially equidistantly spaced from the wall. The edge 34 of each rib remote from the axial wall 18 is substantially parallel to the proximate edge 32 so that the depending portion of each rib will be flexible so as to yield when applied to the ferrule 16 without imposing undue stresses to the 3,203,577 Patented Aug. 31, 1965 walls of the cap itself. The lower internal corners 36 of each rib are rounded or divergent towards the open end of the cap to facilitate application of the cap to the container for which it is intended.

The caps in accordance with the present invention are preferably unitary molded resilient plastic bodies having ribs whose radial dimensions are small enough to assure flexibility in an outwardly radial direction consistent with frictional engagement with the container sufficient to avoid accidental dislodgment.

It will be understood, of course, that the edge at the open end of the cap need not engage the shoulder 24 of the container, but it is important that the axial ribs 26 be spaced from the axial wall 18 throughoutthe axial Zone in which they engage the ferrule 16. Moreover, it will be understood that where such terms as substantially parallel and substantially equidistantly have been used, departure from these conditions will ordinarily exist where the cap is molded in order to permit ready ejection from the mold.

Whereas only one specific form of the invention has been described with respect to the accompanying drawings, such variations as will be suggested to those skilled in the art are contemplated as falling within the scope of the appended claims.

I claim:

1. A unitary molded resilient plastic cap comprising an axial wall closed at one end by a radial wall and open at its opposite end for application to a container; and at least three perimetrically spaced ribs each having an end fixed to at least one of said walls, each rib having a free portion including an edge proximate to said axial wall spaced over a major portion of its length from said axial wall, and an axial edge provided by said free portion remote from said walls resiliently engageable with a portion of a container, whereby said ribs are yieldable to relieve said walls of stresses during application and removal of said cap relative to a container.

2. A unitary molded resilient cap according to claim 1 wherein said axial wall is annular.

3. A unitary molded resilient plastic cap according to claim 2 wherein said edges remote from said annular wall diverge towards the open end of said cap.

4. A unitary molded resilient plastic cap according to claim 2 wherein said ribs have radial edges remote from said radial wall spaced from the open end of said cap.

5. A unitary molded resilient plastic cap according to claim 2 wherein said proximate and remote edges are substantially parallel to said annular wall.

6. A unitary molded resilient plastic cap according to claim 2 wherein said ribs are curved remote from said annular wall and adjacent said open end.

7. A unitary molded resilient plastic cap according to claim 2 wherein an end of each rib is fixed to said radial wall.

8. A unitary molded resilient plastic cap according to claim 2 wherein an end of each rib is fixed to said axial Wall.

References Qited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,884,160 4/59 Abplanalp 222-182 2,973,114 2/61 Patton 22042 3,006,510 10/61 Sagan'n 222182 TI-IERON E. CONDON, Primary Examiner.

EARLE J. DRUMMOND, Examiner. 

1. A UNITARY MOLDED RESILIENT PLASTIC CAP COMPRISING AN AXIAL WALL CLOSED AT ONE END BY A RADIAL WALL AND OPEN AT ITS OPPOSITE END FOR APPLICATION TO A CONTAINER; AND AT LEAST THREE PERIMETRICALLY SPACED RIBS EACH HAVING AN END FIXED TO AT LEAST ONE OF SAID WALLS, EACH RIB HAVING A FREE PORTION INCLUDING AN EDGE PROXIMATE TO SAID AXIAL WALL SPACED OVER A MAJOR PORTION OF ITS LENGTH FROM SAID AXIAL WALL, AND AN AXIAL EDGE PROVIDED BY SAID FREE PORTION REMOTE FROM SAID WALLS RESILIENTLY ENGAGEABLE WITH A PORTION OF A CONTAINER, WHEREBY SAID RIBS ARE YIELDABLE TO 